The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-10-03
CHARLESTON CHAT.
Politics at Fever Heat-The Police
Force-Negroes Prospering.

the politicians and oflice-seekers are becom-
ing impatent-too impatient to wait that
long, and the city is now plunged into the
fight, notenS rolenS. The political gather
ings which have taken place heretofore have
been simply trifiing skirmishes, in which
only cranks and soreheads have taken part;
they amounted to nothing. The new move,
however, the establishment of the Young
Mems Democratic Club, is something more
than this 1t has precipitated matters
and political states and pencils are in as
great demand as are the books and states of
the young people who will resume
their lessons on Monday next. The
preliminary steps taken toward
the organization of the Young Mems
Democratic Club have already been printed,
but there is something to be read between
the lines of the published principles of any
political organization. The new move may
be viewed in good many aspects First Of
all, it is clearly understood that it will opcr-
ate strictly within the lines of the regularly
organized Democratic party-there is no
faint of independentism about it, for the
slightest faint of this would cause it to
crumble to pieces 1t has now about 900
names on its roll, IA powerful lever If well
managed and fully capable, if united. to
mold the primary organization of the Dem
ocratic party.
Some of its founders hope to make the
organization permanent one and to add so
cial to its political features. But this is to be
considered hereafter 1t is intmated that
some of its promoters want office, and this
is probably true, but this need not impair
the value of the organization, especially as
the reported office-seekers are in every way
qualified for the places they seek,
and would be creditable candidates under
any circumstances. If the association will
interest the young Democrats in politics
and bring them out to the primary ward
meetings it will effect a good purpose; it
will insure cleaner conventions, and Will,
pro tanto, retire.the professional politicians
who usually run these Institutions.
In the meantime the race for the mayor
atty gets more and more interesting. During
the week there have been rumors that an
effort would be made to induce Mayor
Courtenay to accept a third term, but as
has been stated in this correspondence, the
Mayor has definitely and positively decided
to be out of the race. Since Sunday last a
new candidate has appeared in the person
of Mr.. w. Z. Holmes, an East Bay mel-
chant, and pretty strong in politics His
entrance, however, does not effect the status
of the race. No candidate has yet been
named who c,o. beat Capt. George Bryan,
either in a D.,s- ratio convention or
in an election before the people. The battle
has opened, however, and from now until
December the good people of this city will
have no rest. 1t is perhaps as well that
they should have something to occupy their
attention.
THE POLICE FORCE.
There seems to be no abatement in the
epidemic of burglaries that prevails here.
The police force has been recruited up to
Its limit-eighty men-but this does not
give the desired relief. Many of the men
are old and totally unfit for street duty. A
night or two ago one of these veterans
arrested burly negro on Beautain street
and was endeavoring to coax his prisoner to
accompany him to the station house. The
prisoner looked at his aged and tottering
captor a moment or two and then, grabbing
him around the waist, lifted him up, threw
him in the middle of the street, and before
the discomtitted cop could catch his
breath had disappeared. A year or
two ago an ordinance was passed
restricting the age of policemen to
men under so years old. OF course the law
was not intended to be retroactive. but the
Commissioners took census of the force
and it was found that there was not a
man on it over 40 years of age. One of the
policemen died yesterday, who had been
on the force for 20 years At the time of
his death he could not have been under IS
years of age He was recorded ON the rolls
3 years ago as 40 years old The fact is
that the force is too small for the territory
1t has to cover and hence the epidemic of
burglaries also, hence the mysterious
murders.
The new steamship line has not only failed
TO materialze, but has almost passed out
of the public mind and it is doubtful If it
will ever be heard of again. Cotton is
coming in very freely The receipts for
the month of September were nearly 90
900 bales against 10000 bales during Sep
TENDER 1886, but there is always a fleet of
ocean tramps in port and these with the
Clyde steamships manage to keep the stock
down pretty well.
PROSPERITY OF THE NEGROES.
The Ne,cS and Courier publishes an i'll
terview with a real estate agent showing
how the negroes of the city are rapidly be
coming real estate owners, buying lots and
building their own houses. This, of course,
is explained by the fact that the average
colored working man, who is at all thrifty
and sober, can easily save money, because
his wants and household expenses are COM
paratively trifling. An instance cited by
the agent, who, by the way, is very long
headed agent, will illustrate the idea. He
says:
"a colored laborer can live and support
his family on very little. | don't know how
they do it, but they do. You would be sur
prised to know how little family of six
colored people can get on with Suppose the
people are sober, reasonably honest and
tolerable Industrious. There is the husband,
tie wife and four children. The husband
gets say $50 month, the wife gets $40 a
month and found, to cook. She carries
home from her place every day enough
T6iItuals TO feed the entire family Mind, |
uunt charge her with dishonesty There
are always enough pickings left for $40 a
month cook to feed a family of six on.
Don't you see how they can save money"
All of which is true
1t is also true that the poorer classes of
whites are not making the progress in this
direction that their colored brethren are
making, and the reason is equally clear. In
the first place there are few laboring white
men in Charleston (by laborers l mean men
who live on salaries or wages who get more
than barely enough wages to support them
selves and their families The expenses are
of course, greater than those of the colored
people and they have no means of accumu-
lating fund to purchase homestead The
Building and Loan Association, of which
there are dozen or more here, do not meet
their cases. because they have to have fund
TO buy lot before they can become Dor
rowers in those institutions, and even those
who accumulate such fund, often have their
houses sold over their heads, because of their
inability to meet the payments. A dozen
wealthy men i'll Charleston have il in their
power to change all this but they don't do it,
There are hundreds of waste places in
Charleston that could be bought at nominal